Wire line guide



Aug- 9, 1949. w. K. HOLLERON ET Al. 2,478,486

WIRE LINE GUIDE Filed April 19, 1947 Patented Aug. 9, 1949 WIRE LINE GUIDE William K. Holleron and William L. Buckley, y Victoria, Tex.

Application April 19, 1947, Serial N0. '742,688'

The invention is particularly adapted for use on well drilling rigs for guiding` the wire line,

or rope, which leads from' the drawworks drum and operates Y over the derrick crown block sheaves.

An object of the invention is to provide a guide of the character described which will move automatically as the Wire line is Vwound onto, or unwound from, the drum of the drawworks so as to maintain itself in proper position but which will limit the lateral movement `of the line thus preventing it from swinging about the derrick and interfering with, or injuring, the workmen.

It is another object of .theinvention to provide a line guide of the character described which is of sturdy construction and 'which will restrain the irregular movements of the line but which is suiciently flexible to allow the necessary movements of the line. p Y

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following specification which is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings wherein- Y Y Figure 1 isa side elevation of the guide shown partly in section. Y,

Figure 2 is an end view thereof.

Figure 3 is an enlargedsectional View taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is an enlarged, cross-sectional View taken on the line of Figure l, and

Figure 5 is a fragmentary, sectional view of another type of plunger which may be employed.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, wherein like numerals of reference designate similar parts in each of the figures, the numeral I designates one of the corner legs of a well derrick.

These corner legs are connected by suitable cross-girts, or braces, 2.

Fastened to a cross brace 2 and extending nwardly therefrom there is a bracket 3.

Supported by the inner end of the bracket there is a rectangular frame which, in the present illustration, is formed of upper and lower channel irons 5, 5 which may be connected, at one end, by a cross-connecting bar 5 and secured between the other ends of which there is a controlling cylinder 1.

Operating in said cylinder there is a piston 8 to which the piston rod Il is secured. This piston rod extends outwardly through the inner end of the cylinder and is sealed with said inner end by means of a stuing box Il! therearound.

On the outer end of said rod there is a car- 5 claims. (C1. 2544190) riage frame I I in which there is mounted the upper and lower carrier Wheels I2 andv I3,whch run in the longitudinal grooves I4 and VI5 in the upper and lower channel irons. APiston rod and piston are thus allowed to move back and forth longitudinally of the frame, Aor track, but are prevented from turning.

As the wire line iswound onto the drum it will move along laterally in the direction indicated by the arrow in Figure 1 and as it is unwound from the drum it will move laterally in the opposite direction. g

The cylinder 1 is filled with a suitable liquid, such as oil.

In a preferred form of the invention there is a transfer pipe I6 -leading from the outer end of the cylinder and entering the Yopposite end thereof and this pipe is provided with a valve I'I by means of which vthe pipe may be opened and closed; During the operation of; the guide the Valve VI'I is open and as the piston 8 moves in one direction the Vliquid in Vfront ofit is transferred through the pipe I6 into the cylinder be hind the piston and vice-versa.

There is a -reserve supply tank I8 filled with oil'and leading from it there is an outlet pipe I9 formed with the branches 20, 20 which enter the -pipe I6 on oppositel sides ofthe valve `I'I.

These branches 20 are equipped with valves 3o-2|, 2| which are normally closed but which may be opened to supply additional oil into the cylinder on either side of the piston as required.

The oil in the cylinder 'I stabilizes the movement of the wire line as it is wound onto, or unwound from, the drum of the drawworks.

As shown in Figure 5, the piston 8a is formed with one, or more, passageways I'Ia therethrough. In case this type of piston is used the valve I 1 may also be maintained closed and upon movement of the piston 8a the liquid in the cylinder may move from one side of the piston to the other side through the passageways IIa. The embodiment illustrated in Figure 5 may be used in lieu of the form shown in Figure 1 if desired.

There is an arm 22 one end of which is formed with a sleeve 23 which surrounds, and is spaced from, the piston rod 9 and Whose ends are internally threaded to receive the plugs 24, 24 which closely surround the rod 9 and are screwed into the respective ends of the sleeve 23.

3' it to expand and grip both the rod 9 and the sleeve 23 so that the arm 22, if partly rotated relative to the rod 9, will cause distortion of said liner and the rebound of the liner -will restore the sleeve to its original position.

The free end of the arm 22 is provided with a frame 26 which is provided with the upper pair of opposed Vrollers 2l, 21 and a lower pair of opposed rollers 28, 28 and the cable, or Wire line, 29 to be guided, passes between the rollers of the respective pair, as shown in Figures 1 and 2. Also mounted in the frame 2B there is an intermediate pair of opposed rollers 30, 39. The cable 29 also passes between these rollers 30. .The cable may therefore move freely longitudinally as 'it is wound onto or unwound from the drum.

The movement of the cablein a direction at right angles to the piston rod 9 will be limited by the arm 22 and the side swaying or slapping of the line will thus be greatly reduced although the guide is suciently exible to allow-the necessary movements of the line while carrying on drilling operations.

The drawings and description are illustrative merely while the broad principle ofthe invention will be dened by the appended claims.

Y What we claim is:

1. .A line guide comprising,V a supporting struc-v ture, a liquid containing cylinder thereon, a piston in thecylinder, there being a by-pass conduit through which the liquid in the cylinder may by-pass the piston, a piston rod connected to the piston and extending out beyond the cylinder, an arm carried by said rod, yieldable means connecting the arm to the rod and normally holding the arm in a selected position relative to the rod and guiding means on the arm through which the line works. z Y j Y 2. A line guide comprising, a supporting structure, a fluid containing cylinder thereon, a piston in the cylinder,v there being a by-pass conduit through which the fluid in the cylinder may by-pass the piston, a piston'rod connected to the piston and extending out beyond the cylinder, an arm yieldingly-connected to the piston rod and guiding means on the arm through which the line Works. j

3. A line guidecomprising, a supporting structure, a fluid containing cylinder thereon, a piston in the cylinder, a conduit through which the fluid in the cylinder may by-pass the piston, means for controlling the passage of uid through said conduit, a piston rod connected to the piston and extending out beyond the cylinder, an arm carried by the rod, resilient means lconnecting the arm to the Yrod arranged to be distorted upon application of'pressure to the arm and which will rebound upon removal of said pressure and line guiding means on the arm through which the line works.

4. A line guide comprising, a supporting structure, a uid containing cylinder thereon, a piston in the cylinder having a conduit therethrough through which the iiuid in the cylinder may by-pass the piston, a piston rod connected to the piston and extending out beyond the cylinder, an arm yieldingly connected to the rod, guide means on the arm through which the line Works, .a track on the supporting structure and a carriage movable along the track'and attached to the extended end of the piston rod.

5. A line guide comprising, a supporting structure, a rod mounted to move longitudinally relative'to said structure, means for controlling longitudinal movement of Vthe rod, a sleeve around the rod, a liner within the sleeve around the rod and formed of resilient material, means for compressing said resilient material within the rod to cause it to grip the rod, an arm depending from the sleeve and line guiding means on the armV through which the lineY Works.

' WILLIAM K. HOLLERON. WILLIAM L.V BUCKLEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

